The field of the invention relates generally to infection control products, and more specifically, to a disposable medical gown that is generally utilized by health care professionals and visitors to certain hospital units.
Disposable medical gowns are known, but those known gowns have some drawbacks. For example, when removal of a gown from a person requires that a strap be untied, there is a chance that germs or viruses may be able to engage the clothing of the gown wearer based on a contact between the person's hand doing the untying and the clothing of the person wearing the gown. Disregarding the medical implications for a moment, such untying action may also expose the clothing to stains based on any medical compounds that are present on the hands, or more likely surgical gloves, of the person doing the untying.
Gowns that fully surround the body are the norm for certain patients, due to prior clothing removal. However, with a current awareness regarding infection control, there is a corresponding need that the medical professional, and any visitors to certain units within a medical facility, be completely surrounded to reduce the passing of germs, viruses, and other sources of infection from one person to another. However, such a full coverage gown should be easily operable, with minimal effort needed to put such a gown on or take it off, so as to limit contamination. As such there is still an unfilled need for a full coverage gown that can be put on by a user, and taken off by the user, in such a manner as to reduce the incidence of germs, viruses, and other sources of infection being passed from one person to another.